Taxpayers increasingly demand trustworthy and efficient public spending, particularly at times of fiscal consolidation. Governments in OECD countries are paying greater attention to the way they spend scarce budgetary resources, and Mexico is no exception. Restoring trust in public institutions has been central to many recent reforms and initiatives by Mexico’s government. The sheer size of public procurement and its heightened exposure to risk provide clear opportunities to restore public confidence not only in the integrity of the government, but also in its efficiency.
In addition to laws and regulations, the evolution of the technology used in procurement generates a spillover effect on the entire system, since it can radically change the way in which procurement operations are conducted and reported. E-procurement platforms have long been used by OECD countries to promote transparency, and CompraNet has always been seen as a crucial tool in that endeavour. Recent advances in technology now provide public authorities with new possibilities for improving efficiency and strategic risk management in procurement.
The OECD report Mexico’s E-procurement System: Redesigning CompraNet through Stakeholder Engagement provides an assessment of the current scope of the system, how it operates, and how well it is suited to supporting efficient, effective and transparent public procurement in Mexico. Reforming CompraNet will entail upgrading the system, so that in addition to allowing access to government procurement documents, it can offer a more strategic approach to procurement. This will help identify weaknesses in the procurement cycle where technology can help streamline the process and minimise exposure to risk.
Introducing e-procurement reform will involve a multitude of stakeholders with different and sometimes conflicting interests. Stakeholder engagement has so far been broad and comprehensive, resulting in an inclusive and collaborative reform process led by the Ministry of Public Administration (Secretaría de la Función Pública, SFP). Leading figures in business, civil society and the public sector were invited to help develop recommendations to enhance CompraNet, and a Plural Working Group on Public Procurement was established. The objective of the Working Group was to build consensus on upgrading and expanding the CompraNet system.
To achieve the desired results, SFP will need to focus on implementation. A phased approach will enable closer monitoring and control of delivery, while reducing the impact of change on system users and other stakeholders. A roadmap for CompraNet has been developed, taking into account the specific context of Mexico and the current state of the CompraNet system. Three phases (for the short, medium and long term) were distinguished, so that CompraNet can evolve from a compliance-driven system into a platform that generates procurement intelligence and, in the third phase, a fully integrated transactional system.